There’s been much
turmoil and upheaval in Australia’s leadership ranks. It started a few years
ago when performances started to dip, leading to distress amongst the Aussie
public. A review of the current structure was detailed, a few people were
knifed in the back and a new leader was anointed.
Much was promised.
Sadly the new
leadership brought different rhetoric but the same, if not worse, levels of
underperformance. Community confidence continued to wane, and some very public
displays of ill discipline didn’t help matters. It all came to a head recently
when the incumbent was sacked and an old favourite drafted in to right a
sinking ship. All this occurred in the face of the most testing of times for
Australia.
Welcome to the Australian cricket team folks!!!
There are some positives on the eve of the Ashes for all Aussie fans. Whilst David Warner’s physical approach to the opposition has seen him relegated to an interchange position for NSW in the State of Origin decider, the Aussies do have a savior ready to step up to the mark.
Introducing Israel Folau!
Sadly it’s not been
such smooth sailing for Mark Webber, who recently announced his retirement from
Formula One to race Porsche's at Le Mans. Obviously Mark feels he can handle a German car much better than he can
handle a smiling, blonde Kraut in a one piece jump suit. Needless to say everyone
in F1 is struggling to keep a grip on things, with more things blown at
Silverstone than the shower block in a maximum security prison.
The Socceroos
certainly didn’t blow anything as they qualified for their third World Cup in
succession. They did make hard work of the final qualifying match, until Israel
Folau Josh Kennedy scored a late winner. It’s going to be party time in
Brazil next year!
It was party time in
Rio at the recent Confederations Cup, where the host nation dismantled Spain
three zip in the final. The Maracana exploded in unbridled joy as goals from Neymar
and Fred inflicted Spain’s worst defeat in 18 years. La Roja hasn’t looked that
toothless since the Spanish Armada crashed against British shores.
To be fair to the Spanish
footballers they would have been exhausted by the final. A World Cup title
sandwiched between two successful European Cup campaigns…just thinking about it
makes me tired. And with Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes out
of the picture following Operacion Puerto
there was nothing available to offer that additional pick me up.
It wasn’t just
Iniesta, Pique, Xavi and co. that hit the wall. After securing his eighth
French Open title Nadal met his match at the first round of Wimbledon. Maybe
grass is the only ‘supplement’ that doesn’t sit well with Spanish athletes.
LeBron James didn’t
need any supplements in leading the Miami Heat to back-to-back NBA
championships. He just needed a little faith and some divine intervention. And
so it was to be. Jesus Shuttlesworth (aka Ray Allen) knocked down a buzzer
beating three to keep the Heat alive in Game 6 before finally conquering the
resilient San Antonio Spurs in one of the best finals in recent memory.
James copped a lot of
flak from all pundits following his decision to join forces with Wade and Bosh
and take his talents to South Beach. After seeing LeBron lead the Heat in
points, assists and rebounds, and perform as their primary defensive stopper,
its Wade and Bosh who should bear the brunt of vitriol. Miami doesn’t have a ‘Big
Three’. They have LeBron James. He has carried this franchise over the
mountain-top, not once but twice.
Nice segue to what
will be the highlight of the 2013 sporting calendar – Stage 18 of the Tour
de France (Thursday, 18th July). This is the 100th Tour,
and to celebrate this milestone the organizers have developed the most
challenging course to date. Lots of mountain stages, including the dreaded Mont Ventoux. But the real headline is L'Alpe d'Huez. A 172.5 km stage that includes a 13.8 km climb at an average 7.9 per
cent, with 21 hairpin bends…which will be climbed twice!!! Pack an esky full of
EPO and get onboard because climbing L'Alpe d'Huez twice has never been tried in the
99 previous Tours. This stage has the capacity to kill many a riders hopes, dreams and testicles.
Dropping out of contention has
been a regular theme at the Parramatta Eels in recent seasons. Horrible
recruitment, poor form, back luck with injuries and some unusual coaching
choices have conspired to leave the once mighty (really???) Eels reeling year
after year. This season Ricky Stuart took a proactive approach to right the
ship, going Rains of Castamere on half the squad. Like Sir Walder Frey at the
Red Wedding, Stuart broke bread with his players before unleashing an ambush
that left many a career assassinated.
Across the equator another coach
was busy rejuvenating a once proud club. Brendan Rogers had
mixed success leading Liverpool FC through another mediocre season, but there
were some positives to draw on, especially the form of Brazilian Philippe
Coutinho. However the
big question remained ‘whose name was in the preseason envelope?’ Sadly it was never revealed, but in an
exclusive interview Luis Suarez claimed he was extremely disappointed to have
not been named. He really sunk his teeth into this season, and certainly bit off
more than he could chew being Liverpool’s primary goal scorer and creator.
Hopefully he can get that bitter taste out of his mouth before pre-season!
He’s not the only one with a
bitter taste in his mouth. Croatian sports fans were thwarted at the European
Water Polo Championships, with Jug Dubrovnik suffering in the final at the hands
of Crvena Zvezda. Zvezda was crowned the new king of Europe (it’s
been a long while since I’ve been able to say that) after winning a thrilling
battle in front of 4000 fans. The crowd created an atmosphere never before experienced
at water polo. It was a fitting end to a fantastic season.
Enjoy.
No comments:
Post a Comment